Hello. New here. With a major problem.

[Merc14]

Breakdancer-
Break the mobo back down to just the CPU/HSF, 1 stick of RAM and video card and RESET CMOS/BIOS and the reboot and go through the troubleshooting routine again.

NEVERMIND- posted before I read page 2. Let us know how it goes with the new mobo. The new PSU was a good idea, what kind did you get? Troubleshooting is tough. You have to, very methodically, break it down to what you think is wrong and then go for that fix. If no change then try the next best thing etc. At least you have learned the process and can troubleshoot pretty well now.

I think you had at least two problems with this board, one being the PSU and the other possibly the mobo or the RAM. It is really hard to troubleshoot two completely different problems on a new build so if you get it working then congrats and well done.

 

[breakdancer1881]

Thanks MERC.

I figure if this new mobo doesn't work either, then its got to be a conflict with the RAM, and then I'll send that back to be replaced.

The PSU I got is a 350w SurePower by mad dog multimedia. It was 50 dollars and has a 5 year warranty, so I think its a quality PSU.

 

[Merc14]

Don't know anything about those psu's but the website doesn't give the amps on the 12v rail(s) so hard to judge. Should be fine for that system though. Hope it all works out. Frustrating hobby eh? LOL

 

[breakdancer1881]

its a brand new surefire 350w MD-350WPS AMD ATX +12V 1.3 AND ATX 2.03.


That was on the side of the box.

and yes, its so frustrating. But thank you for all your time, and help. I will be sure to post as soon as the new mobo comes so we can work together from step 1.

 

[breakdancer1881]

Hello everyone, I am back. Merc I hope you are still with us!

Well, I got my new mobo, hooked everything up.

It boots to windows all the time now, however when in windows, it crashes after a minute or 2, sometimes 3. So I think, obviously, something isn't stable. It must be the ram? How do I test if it is? Buy some extra ram?

I'm back for your tech support!

 

[C0d3Warr10r]

Possible problem

breakdancer1881

I've seen computers that were grounding out behave exactly as you've described. I dont mean to discourage you, but you may need to remove the motherboard again and make sure that you've properly installed the motherboard stand-offs. These stand-offs will prevent your motherboard from grounding out on the case chassis. I really recommend checking this before turning the computer on again. I've included a picture of the typical stand-offs below. Keep up the good work man, you've come a long way in a short period of time, especially this being your first system.

 

[urbandragon]

another possibility is overheating possibly..

after you replaced the motherboard did you reapply some arctic silver/thermal paste?

 

[Merc14]

Hey Breakdancer-
After making sure that you aren't shorting out on any stray standoffs as CW above suggested, you can test the memory by downloading a free utility called memtest86. There are instructions on the site but basically you make a MSDOS disk using the windows floppy utility and the extract memtest86 to the floppy. Set your boot order in BIOS to floppy first and reboot. The sytem will come up into memtest and then just let it run for as long as you can and see if there are any errors after an hour or two.

ALso, after all the resets and BSODs etc that you have had with this system I would suggest that a fresh install of windows would benefit you greatly. If you need to IM, let me know with a PM. By the time you get this rig working, and you will, you will be a troubleshooting guru.

 

[Neuron]

PSU isnt the problem

I had a similar problem. Usually if nothing appears on the monitor at all, and you've tested all of your components on other machines (and they are fine). Your RAM may not be properly seated. Everything works (fans and all) but nothing comes up. This is the classic RAM problem. Check to see if the ram is properly seated. Check out the small stuff before investing in major components.